The Pickens sentinel. [volume] (Pickens, S.C.) 1871-1903, 1887-04-07

oISiueS' curing my voyage across the
lied Sea" | have discovered that not
only do 81 not know how to farm" but
that very few OF us in the hilly part OF
South Carolina do. We are land.
butchers, not farmers. We are over.
seers far worse than Irish landlords.
and the negroes are eating us out OF
houses and homes, while we follow the
Old ante-bellum system, but strive after
money to buy O living, instead of making
the living at home. Our lands, too, al G
going down tho rivers and rapidly de-
farming.
Now, whether this "over true tale''
shows me to be F'failure" or not your
readers must decide, / was "blind and
ieil Ill tho ditch" The question is
whether am likely to lead others into
the same ditch or not. They say ere
folmed drunkards make the best tenn
perance lecturers, and am fully quail
ned to 1nyeigh against the errors of our
iarmlnS for L have experienced them all.
some men never learn even from expo
rience, but / feel [ am we'll qualified to
preach this crusade. I do not care O fig
about getting on the board of agrioul-
ture, nor do | need or desire to travel to
make up my mind in regard to agricul-
turGl colleges. l know those of NIichi-
gan and Mississippi ..re grand successes,
and L have Gen, Stephen d. Lees re-
port of his examination into the work
ln9S Of those of Kansas, Iowa and Mich
gan, which | will get the News and
Courier to publish before the Legisla-
ture meets again for its information.
AS ior 'lcading the farmers of the
State, have never made any such
clam. struck out at Bennottsvillc
boldly and alone to expose some hum
bugs, point out needed reforms and to
demand Justice for farmers. | have
some rights as a taxpayer, which are
invaded. and give utterance only to my
honest sentiments. If l am "lcadCr"
the people have made me so, for | GER
talnIy had no followers when [ started,
and it was problematical whether ] would
over have any. But | believed / was
right, and [ think SO still, and SO be.
hcvlng, viii continue the fight as long
as the people will back me. [ only wish
l. IVES so situated that l could go moro
among thcm and talk face to face.
Now, let us see about the last Conven-
tion which met in November. The basis
OF representation was the same us that of
the General Assembly, I59 Charleston,
which was entitled to II, having no
turner's except on james Island, ONLY
sent =. Beaufort and Georgetown was
100 sparBcly populated with white people
to organize iGnucrs clubs, and Horny
tlnS hardly heard of the Farmers move
m"Gt yet, ! reckon, except through
senator Smith and its members of the
House. There wrrc over one hundred
other delegates, all The other counties
being represented, except Aiken, Barn
well, Hampton and York; and if Sena-
tor Talbert and were tho only repre-
scntativcs from tho Fifth Congressional
District, morc's the pity. The Conven-
ton was respectable, both III size and
ability, even though Col. Eoumans
claims that no and his friends have a
mono poly OF "rcspectnbility.' The
News and Courier said it "wns sue
cess" The "thousauds Of farmers who
were IN Columbia" were attending the
talr, and were too intent on that to at
tend the sessions Of the Convention.
lmitating his friends and trainer, the
Commissioner of Agriculture, Col. You
mans next catalogues the members OF
the board, and on the theory that the
"MnG can do no wrong," clears them
of blame because they are "all honor
able men," This ''pile of honorables,
topped of with q Governor" has been
thrown at me once before, but it cannot
erase the record. But Governor Hagood
has had no connection with the board
during the time when the "incom-
pctcncc and Extravaganza" have been SO
rampant All Of this has been since
1892. Governor Thompson / have al
ways respected as Il mere fgure-head on
the board, who took no interest or con-
troll III its affairs, and in truth I am
afraid that has been the trouble with all
of them. But while the commissioner
may be tho real culprit in the matter,
the law makes the board the controlling
power and they must bear or share the
blame.
DR.. Popes "three for quarter" COM
mittce, sclf-appointed and therefore linn
tied, Is next brought i'll by Senator YOU
mans to eXOnorate the board by its
''whitcwashing" report. 1 can only guess
how that report came to be made. The
able ''statistician" who proved that
South Carolina was 1868, 600, 600 bettcr off
in 'S5 thanin 80, and who clerks for the
commissioner, doubtless furnished the
'H8moS" and data. There was evidently
no Investigation. But from whatever
cause, Newberry's able representative
was fooled and that badly. The next
day after it was made to the economic
caucus, so called, my expose Of the cx-
pcnditures i'll the Agricultural Depart
mont camo ont in the News and Courier,
and the House, ignoring DIR. Pope's re,
port, at once passed q bill to take the
control Of the privilege tax from the
board and limit it's expenditures to a
certain sum appropriated on estimates
submitted. This bill tho Senate, n ma
jority OF which seems to belong to the
Commissioner aud to the Coosaw King,
Senator omythc, refused to pass, mainly
through the manipulations of MessrS.
5mytho and Youmans. The Senator
from Charleston had received from the
Department several thousand dollars in
fees for the "Chisolm Island lawsuit, "
and ii was "ticklc me and I'll tickle
you" SO for two years in succession
these two worthy Senators haYe blocked
tho efforts OF tho House to enforce econ
omy i'll tho Agricultural Department. 1t
is to be presumed that Col. Youmans ex-
poets to be "ticklod" hereafter, not with
money, but with political influence and
votes, He stands by his friends, right
Or yyrpnot ,.ooor1Ipoo Of n 10 rp,, OF 70